You’ve heard this expression and so have I—when someone wishes that something will be so, they add the words ‘touch wood.’
(While reaching out to touch a nearby wooden object. Or, in the case of the witty ones, touching their own head—implying that it is made of wood.)
Why on earth would anything think that wood is lucky?
Or that wood grants out wishes?
Well, as you might expect the experts suggest this probably embodies an ancient superstition (as silly and pointless and all superstitions—black cats, the fear of the number “13” and all the rest.)
The most common ‘wood’ superstition seems to have related to very old, pre-Christian, rituals involving the spirits of sacred trees such as the oak, ash, holly or hawthorn.
In Greek mythology this tree spirits were called ‘Dyads.’
So, if you ‘touch wood’ you are summoning an ancient tree spirit to your aid.
Closely connected is the expression ‘knock on wood’ in which instead of touching you knock the wooden object to give you success in your endeavour.
In olden times the Irish, I am told, believed that knocking wood was a way of thanking the ‘little folk’ for their help.
But others suggest that knocking on wood prevents the Devil from hearing what you are saying (and gleefully leaping in to stop it).
Mind some writers say that the wood symbolises the timber of the cross on which Christ was crucified, but this may be a Christianisation of an older ritual—or an attempt by a primitive tribe to save some of their old rituals when the tribe converted to Christianity.
But it’s still a superstition!
A silly superstition!
As such (to use an Aussie expression) it doesn’t pass the pub test.
Tonight I will join Peta Credlin on Sky News for 'Words Matter.'
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BY THE WAY...
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